Ahmed Zayat, the owner of Triple Crown hopeful American Pharoah, is facing accusations that he cheated a convicted felon out of $1.65 million by refusing to pay off gambling debts he ran up at an offshore sports betting casino, federal court records show.

Documents filed in U.S. District Court in Newark over the past 14 months lay out the contentious legal battle waged between lawyers for Zayat and Howard Rubinsky, a sometime X-ray technician from Florida who specialized in steering high-end gamblers to betting sites.

Rubinsky sued Zayat for breach of contract in March 2014, claiming he advanced the Egyptian-born businessman a line of credit at a sports betting casino in Costa Rica called Tradewinds.

Rubinsky, 58, says that after Zayat lost $2 million betting on sports, Zayat paid back $350,000, sticking Rubinsky with the tab for the rest, according to court documents.

But Zayat refutes the claims and has a different version of events. He says he never agreed to place any bets through Rubinsky and doesn't owe him any money.

"I never asked Rubinsky to put up a line of credit for me anywhere, and I was never aware – and I am still not aware – that he ever did so," Zayat wrote in a March 31, 2015, declaration sent to the court.

Zayat, who lives in Teaneck, ran a successful beer distributorship in Egypt before returning to the U.S. full time in 2005 to run Zayat Stables, quickly establishing himself as one of the country's leading owners and breeders of thoroughbred racehorses.

This is not the first time Zayat's been forced to answer questions about his association with convicted felons.

In 2010, federal bankruptcy court records revealed that Zayat was owed $600,000 he'd loaned to the brothers Jeffrey and Michael Jelinsky, who were convicted on federal charges in 2009 for their roles in an illegal bookmaking operation.

After the New York Times revealed Zayats' link to the Jelinskys in 2010, Zayat said he was "trying to help them out," according to the Times.

The Jelinskys introduced Zayat to Rubinsky during a breakfast meeting sometime between 2001 and 2003, according to Zayat's declaration.

Zayat says he gave Rubinsky a $25,000 check in 2008 during a meeting that he recalled took place in either his office or his home, according to Zayat's lawyers. He does not recall giving Rubinsky a second check, as Rubinsky claims.

"Mr. Rubinsky told me he needed help because he could not afford to live or even to buy food, and could not afford to attend to his health issues," Zayat writes. "It was, and is, not at all uncommon for people to request that I assist them financially, and I was always willing to help a person in need. I agreed to give Mr. Rubinsky some money to help him get back on his feet."

When Rubinsky continued to pester him for money, Zayat said he cut him off.

"I realized that Mr. Rubinsky was trying to take advantage of me, and I decided to sever ties with him," Zayat added.

Rubinsky claimed the alleged payments were evidence that Zayat intended to continue paying off Zayat's Tradewinds debt. He provided the court with text messages from Zayat, which he says show that Zayat made a promise to continue the payments.

Zayat's attorney, Joseph Vann, said he has "moved to dismiss this meritless claim relating to allegations from 11 years ago."

"We have said everything we are going to say in the court papers," said Joseph Bainton, Rubinsky's attorney. "We believe the lawsuit has merit."

In the coming days, Judge William Martini is expected to rule on a request by Zayat's lawyers to dismiss Rubinsky's lawsuit.

In his lawsuit, Rubinsky claims that when Zayat "began to experience financial difficulties" in 2008 that forced him to declare bankruptcy, Zayat asked Rubinsky to "be patient in light of the pressure (Zayat) was under."

But even after Zayat settled his bankruptcy issues, he made no further payments on the $1.65 million, the lawsuit claims.

Zayat's lawyers are asking that the case brought by Rubinsky be tossed out of court.

"This case should not proceed to trial," Zayat's lawyers wrote in March.

For one thing, they say there is no evidence of a contract between Zayat and Rubinsky.

"Not only is it undisputed that Zayat never asked Plaintiff to establish a line of credit on his behalf at Tradewinds, but Plaintiff admits that he neither met nor had any communication with Zayat at all until after his alleged debt was incurred," Vann wrote in March 2015.

In 2009, the Jelinskys pleaded guilty in Nevada to federal charges of money laundering and conducting an illegal gambling business. Michael was sentenced to 15 months in prison and Jeffrey 21 months, court records show.

Rubinsky was accused of assisting Jeffrey Jelinsky in conducting illegal financial transactions stemming from that case, court records show.

In 2008, Rubinsky pleaded guilty to charges of money laundering and interstate transmission of wagering information. He was sentenced to three years probation.

Zayat says he first met Rubinsky when he showed up uninvited at his house with Michael and Jeffrey Jelinsky sometime between 2001 and 2003, his declaration claims.

Zayat got to know the Jelinsky brothers through their father and recalled them as standout high school basketball players in Wayne before they moved to Las Vegas.

He says he turned down the Jelinskys and Rubinsky when they asked him to invest in a business venture, he said.

But he remained friendly with Michael Jelinsky and sometime in 2007 or 2008 he agreed to place bets on horses through an online account that Jelinsky kept for so-called "legal pools."

"It turned out that unbeknownst to me, I was a victim of a large scam the Jelinskys perpetrated on me," Zayat writes.

Zayat's lawyers suggest that after Rubinsky's relationship with the Jelinskys fell apart, he "needed another source of income and he turns his attention to Zayat."

On May 6, Bainton urged Martini to let the case go to trial so that a jury can sort through the conflicting accounts.

"This Court's obligation on this motion is not to judge credibility, but rather to determine whether there are material questions of fact worthy of submission to a jury," Bainton writes.

"As Zayat's counsel correctly observes, Rubinsky and Zayat swear to two, entirely different stories. One of the two men cannot conceivably be telling the truth."

American Pharoah has already captured the first two legs of the Triple Crown, the Kentucky Derby on and the Preakness. On June 6, he'll attempt to become the first horse to win the Triple Crown in 37 years when he runs in the Belmont Stakes.

"We are very grateful for the extraordinary enthusiasm and support we've received from fans everywhere about American Pharaoh and this is a time to focus on celebrating the great interest in the sport instead of rehashing issues that were resolved several years ago," a Zayat spokesman said Wednesday.

This is a reprint from nj.com. to view the original, click here.